Friday, May 2, 2008

Working with local advertisers across the country a couple of questions seem to be common across different type businesses and different parts of the country. The first question is why should I care about this online audience when it's still a relatively small number of potential customers? And second, when I have tried this in the past I didn't get any results so why should I try it again?

My answer for both questions is usually some version of this opinion I have: Advertising is changing, dramatically. The rules, tools, effectiveness, measurement and players are in a state of flux never before seen. But there are success stories, plenty of them. So the sooner you get in the game, the sooner you will find your path. And as your media partner, we're hear to help, guide and nurture your digital marketing attempts.

The natural reaction for most local advertisers to this state of flux is to seek the perceived safety of the sidelines and wait. So for those on the sidelines, let me share this. I believe the most significant driving force in the changing advertising reality is the power of your customers and potential customers. They are taking control. And this control will replace traditional push strategies, (television, newspaper, radio, direct mail, outdoor) with a still-emerging pull strategy some people call conversational marketing. The ultimate goal of your future advertising will be to create a conversation with your clients and potential customers. I'll write more about this in other posts. But look at the linked story below. Dell Computers is currently doing this in one of their campaigns with success that can be measured and tracked.